RAJ KUMAR
Ranchi, Dec.28: The Jharkhand government has disowned the martyrs of Jharkhand who sacrificed their lives for the nation before the bifurcation of Jharkhand from Bihar on November 15, 2000.
It has come to the fore when an organisation of retired defence personnel attempted to ensure a compassionate job to the family members of the martyrs and the home department of the state clarified that family members of martyrs, who sacrificed their lives before creation of Jharkhand, are not entitled.
Mukesh Kumar, who is the president of retired defence personnel’s organization, Veteran Organisation of Jharkhand, informed the Lagatar24.com regarding the fact sharing a letter issued by the home department to Simdega DC, who had sent name of four martyrs from his district asking for a compassionate job of their kin according to the Jharkhand government’s policy.
The letter was issued on January 29 last year. The letter suggested that the government took resolution to give special grace grants and jobs on compassionate grounds to martyrs’ kin on May 7, 2003 making it effective from November 15, 2000.
Kumar while sharing a letter expressed his concern over the policy of the government taking martyrs.
“When time comes to take credit, the Jharkhand government owns all the martyrs. They do not say whether they sacrificed their lives before the creation of Jharkhand or after the creation of Jharkhand. But when it comes to giving due right to their kin, the government becomes selective. It starts talking about a cut-off date suggesting that the government is not concerned about martyrs’ kin,” Kumar said.
Kumar said in Simdega out of three martyrs’ families who have not been provided jobs on compassionate grounds include the family of a Veer Chakra recipient John Brito Kido. “The Government should take some policy decisions in the matter as the family members of martyrs in Jharkhand are so simple that they lack proper knowledge and information about the decision the government takes for them,” Kumar said.
Elaborating the problem of Kido’s family, Mukesh said: “After sacrifice of Kido in Jaffna during an operation by Indian Peace Keeping Force in Srilanka in 1989 the then president Shanker Dayal Sharma gave Veer Chakra to the martyr’s mother but after that no one took proper care. His brother joined the army job on his merit and died after his retirement in 2000. After that there is no one in the family to take care of the martyr’s 85-year old mother and 90-year old father. Only surviving brother of the martyr is a daily waged labour and hardly earns Rs 9000 in a month. We came to know about the pathetic condition of the martyr’s family a week ago when his mother died and the family did not have money for her proper treatment.”
